(Re)discover our city - Supermarket Economat

Think you know our capital well? Well, let's see about that! Some of the buildings that you walk past on a regular basis have a special story behind them. Dr Robert L. Philippart is a true expert on the subject and will take you through the city to uncover these hidden stories, giving you a new way of looking at some of our emblematic buildings.

Supermarket Economat (4, place de Strasbourg)

Supermarket Economat was one of the pioneers of self-service in Luxembourg. The brand's founder, Rischard Henricy, began his career in 1934 with the company Alimentation Générale du Luxembourg (meaning "Luxembourg grocer's"). He and his wife then opened the food shop Consum on the corner of Rue de Strasbourg and Rue Adolphe Fischer in 1938. In 1951, Rischard Henricy bought a retail lot from the Belgian mining company Loco Lux where he established the first large self-service shop in Luxembourg. The opening of this new shop was part of the reason why a new road was needed to connect Rue 1900 to Rue Adolphe Fischer. The grocery shop was opened in 1951 and targeted customers travelling by personal motor car. Customers could avail of a public car park installed on Place de Strasbourg. They could get a trolley at the entrance and roam the aisles, which were lit by around 180 neon tubes, serving themselves. The products were presented along a shelf-lined 125 m route with 300 m of displays. Younger visitors were impressed by the aquarium with its Luxembourg trout. There was a whole department just for products that needed to be stored at low temperatures. The establishment had its own roastery, OMA. At the time of its opening, the self-service supermarket had around 20 workstations. The owner Rischard Henricy favoured a modern, striking style of architecture, and this was ultimately provided by the architect Roger Wercollier, to whom we owe the design of Luxembourg's National Strike Monument. Wercollier was the brother of the sculptor Lucien Wercollier. In 1964, the shop was passed down to its founder's son, Pol Henricy, and his wife Mairanne Harpes. With Luxembourg having recently welcomed several new European institutions, Supermarket Economat offered a new way to shop and a quality and variety of food products that was particularly appreciated by European officials who were used to this type of store. In 1968, the establishment was expanded with the addition of a new building containing a retail space, offices and housing. At that time, it had 65 employees. Customers had special booklets containing discount stamps for future purchases. Despite the company's innovative spirit, it closed its doors for good on 31 October 1999. Its workforce counted 30 employees at the time. The public car park across from it was converted into a park with a playground.